Ray Allen's Future Uncertain As Free Agency Looms

By: Stephen Patterson

After the Boston Celtics fell to the Miami Heat in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the immediate question for Celtics' fans became "What's next?", as the future of the team they have fallen in love with over the past five seasons might be in store for a major shake-up this summer.

With Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett both set to hit the open market in free agency, it's extremely likely we have witnessed the end up of the "Big Three" era (really it's been the "Big Four" era, especially this season) in Boston.

While Celtics' GM Danny Ainge has said he isn't opposed to bringing back Allen and Garnett, it's hard to imagine the team being able to find the money to keep both of them while still bringing younger and more talented players in to build for the future.

"I really value having those guys around young players,'' a league source quoted Ainge as saying, according to an article on SI.com.

Garnett's status for next season is nearly impossible to predict right now, as there have been reports circulating for months that he was going to retire at the end of this season, while there have been just as many reports stating the opposite.

Head coach Doc Rivers has stated several times in recent weeks that he believes KG will play at least one more season, although there is also a decent chance he will choose to walk away on a high note, following a postseason in which he played a massive role in helping Boston make it as far as they did while Allen and Paul Pierce battled leg injuries for most of the playoffs. (For more on KG, check out this post from earlier in the week.)

Allen, who will turn 37 next month, is planning to undergo surgery as soon as possible to remove bone spurs from the ankle that bothered him throughout the postseason, causing him to miss Boston's first two playoff games against the Atlanta Hawks in the opening round.

"If I could do it tomorrow, I would do it tomorrow," he said. "That's probably my main concern right now, is taking care of that. My body feels good. That's my only issue."

Assuming everything goes well with the surgery and no other issues are discovered, Allen should return to full strength in plenty of time for the start of training camp. The only question is which teams' training camp will Allen be attending?

Contenders such as the Chicago Bulls, Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks, and Memphis Grizzlies are rumored to be interested in pursuing Allen this summer according to Sports Illustrated.

According to Chris Mannox of SI, the Knicks and Miami Heat are reportedly the top two teams on Allen's wishlist of potential destinations if he leaves Boston.

The Memphis Grizzlies almost landed Allen at the trade deadline, having a deal in place with the Celtics that would have sent O.J. Mayo and a lottery pick to Boston in exchange for Allen before the Grizzlies backed out at the last second.

If Allen were to receive similar offers from Boston and a team such as the Bulls, who are on the cusp of being very serious title contenders once Derrick Rose returns from his torn ACL, it would be difficult for Allen to pass up a chance at a second title to return to the Celtics, although he does have serious respect for the organization and the players who played there prior to him.

“It’s always been somewhat intimidating,” Allen said when talking about playing in Boston. “You walk into a building every day and you see the banners and the retired jerseys in the building. It just always makes you work a little bit harder.  When [John] Havlicek is in the building, when [Bob] Cousy is around. Tommy [Heinsohn] is watching us every day. Bill Russell is at the games. Those are like our big brothers.  We knew that we had some big shoes to fill and a lot that we needed to do to try to compare to what they’ve done. We have definitely fallen short, but we’ve gone out trying to play as hard as we can every night.”

So don't completely rule out a possible return to Boston, especially if Garnett decides to retire or ends up signing with another team, which would leave a lot more salary cap flexibility for the Celtics to retain Allen while still bringing in some solid role players and young talents.

Then the Celtics could possibly make one final run at a title before fully transitioning into a new era with Rajon Rondo leading the charge and Pierce and Allen still having large roles while mentoring the younger guys in the locker room.

My personal guess is that Allen will probably end up in a new uniform after this summer, as I think he might have felt a little betrayed by the fact that Ainge almost dealt him to Memphis without even giving him a real heads up on the matter during the season.

Where he will end up signing what will likely be his final contract, I have no idea, although I'm almost positive Allen will sign with a team that has a very real chance at winning a championship next season.

Considering the fact that he pretty much carried the Celtics early in the season, along with Rondo, while Pierce and Garnett were adjusting to the condensed schedule and shot 45% from downtown during the regular season, there definitely won't be a lack of interest in the all-time leader in made three point attempts.

Which team do you think will end up signing Ray Allen this offseason? Will he return to Boston to finish out his career or will he go to a team that has a better chance of giving him another ring? Share your thoughts below.